On Tuesday, Utah played a bigger role than ever before in the race for presidential nominations, but Utah County voters faced mass confusion.

Many voters had an experience like that of Lorna Alder, a 101-year-old Provo resident. She went to her regular polling place at Centennial Middle School to vote, only to find that she needed to go to another location.

"We had always voted at Centennial, and not knowing any different, that's where we went," she said.

But things got worse. Voters who located the polls often encountered long lines. Some were informed they were at the wrong place and sent off to another, but not always the right one. Josh Dettinger said he went to his usual polling place, Farrer Elementary School, where he was redirected to Provost Elementary, then to the historic courthouse and back to Provost before he could vote.

The county re-aligned precincts last year, and polling places were consolidated from 107 to 59 for the presidential primaries. Many voters said they hadn't heard a word about that.

Bryan Thompson, Utah County clerk/auditor, expressed regret in a statement. "I want to express my apologies to the voters of Utah County for the inconveniences they experienced today. I take personal responsibility for the problems that occurred today, and will make sure that we make the necessary changes to our election procedures."

He said a poor turnout for the 2000 primary prompted the county to cut back on polling stations. The goal was to save money -- a motive that might hold water if there's a lot of money to be saved. But there isn't. It's peanuts.

Moreover, it should have been obvious to anyone following the primaries that this wasn't going to be a normal Super Tuesday. Interest was particularly heightened by the Mormon on the ballot, Mitt Romney. And Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton staged the first real fight we can remember in Utah, which is usually written off.

Thompson deserves some credit for admitting his mistakes. But the issue now is how to prepare for future balloting. It seems basic to us that polling places should remain constant, regardless of the size of an election. Predictabiliity helps protect the right of everyone to vote. As for convenience, government serves the people, not the other way around.

Most Utah County residents are not obsessed with politics, and shouldn't have to spend a lot of time hunting for the polling place for each election.

Reportedly, only about $50,000 was saved by consolidating polling places, which is a bit more than a dime per county resident. The money saved clearly was not worth the hassles the moves created. If funding cuts are ever needed, they should never come from the essential function of obtaining citizens' votes but from some other part of the budget.

Also, if there are unavoidable changes in voting places or procedures, they need to be publicized more thoroughly. The county should mail any affected voters a notice of changes.

Ordinary people lead busy lives, and election problems are an unnecessary added hurdle. For example, county voter Eliza Tanner Hawkins found out too late that the location of her polling place had changed. By the time she got there the wait was almost 45 minutes. Hawkins said she had two young sons with fevers and she could not stay to vote.

We would not be surprised if others found themselves similarly disenfranchised by the problems.

Some argue that voting by mail would make the process easier for all concerned, including election officials and their volunteers, and that it would broaden participation in elections. They may be right, though others argue that the political process is dynamic, and events right up to Election Day can sway voters. There may be practical value in maintaining tradition.

The merits of voting by mail may be argued. But so long as the system includes traditional polling places, government should do everything possible to make voting orderly and predictable. If it costs a little more, it's worth it.